Truth and Death
by CuriousChesnaught
Summary: A fan-fiction dedicated to all those loyal pearl-shippers out there. This story features Dawn Berlitz and her poke-pals on a quest to find out the truth and become the greatest battle team in history. Story will include lots of new faces, drama, adventure and friendship on the way. Actual Pearl-shipping starts in later chapters. Rates T for violence, deaths and language.
1. Live and let live

**00 Authors Notes 00 **

_Ace has finally decided to join the pearl-shipping authors' crew!_

_It took me a while to think of something worthy to post. I eventually settled with the idea of slowly posting every single pearlshippy story-line I can possibly think of._

_Remember, I'll be updating this fan fiction whenever I feel like it so no forcing me to post!_

**Argonaut:** Yeah yeah…we know you'll disappear in a month or two.

**Remus:** Or probably die in a road-side ditch.

**Ace:** That's really offensive you guys T^T I promise I'll try my best!

**Domino:** *Stares at me in disbelief* …

Ace: What?

**Domino:** You got an eye booger.

**Ace:** Say wut? O_O *Looks in the mirror and realizes there really is an eye booger* GET IT OOUUUUUUT! *wipes eye with a bucket of water* OHMYFLIPPINGOSHITISSTUCK! GET IT OUT!

**Ceaser:** *Grabs Ace by his shoulder and stares into his eyes* How many fingers do I have?

**Ace:** One on each hand? You know, the white thingy…

**Ceaser: ***Le claw slaps* these are claws! I don't have fingers *sets Ace down*.

**Ace:** *Le GHASP* you don't? *Grabs Ceaser's claw and notices there is no finger* you poor thing! Dx

**Domino:** *Shakes his head after realizing Ace forgot about the eye booger*

**Argonaut:** People, if you value your sanity, I recommend you don't read these author notes at all.

**Me:** Barfing unicorns~

**Ceaser:** Why'd you focus on Dawn in this fic?

**Me:** It's because she deserves it. I hate it when people degrade her in a fan-fiction. I mean, without her Ash wouldn't be the trainer he is today! *rants on about how awesome Dawn is*

**Ceaser:** I get it…

**Argonaut:** Hey Ace, I hear there is a shop that sells free food!

**Me:** Immah get them foooood~ (~o3o)~ *runs away*

**Argonaut:** Your welcome, dear reader. Now go on ahead and read what this idiot has to offer.

_Please note that in a Pokémon's point of view, he can speak regularly and not just say fragments of his name. It may seem like the pokemon is talking in English but to the other human characters it will sound like how any other ordinary pokemon of its species would sound like._

The ages of the characters introduced in this chapter are:

Dawn Berlitz: 14

Ash Ketchum: 15

Serena: 13

Clemont: 16

Bonnie: 10

_Bold &Italics represent telepathic communication while plain italics represent a Pokemon conversing ^_^_

* * *

A midnight blue haired girl looked out from the window of her bed-room, her face stained with dried tears and her skin was pale. Her eyes were cloudy and dreary; they could make a three old start to cry. Her hair that once glistened under the sun is now matted and dull. She was sniffling in a rhythmic pattern, her hands were shivering and it seemed like the poor soul would collapse any moment. The girl was alone; her room had a ghostly silence in it. Even the night sky was somber and bore no stars.

She shook her head and let another tear escape her ocean blue eyes. Her eyes were once deep and enthralled another so much that they would forget when to stop staring at them, those eyes were now subdued; they held no secret, no emotion.

The door clicked and opened but she paid no mind to it, her gaze was fixed on the sky. A tiny blue creature cautiously entered the room. Afraid that he might upset his mistress he tiptoed near her and stopped just next to her left foot.

The girl stopped gaping at the sky and bent down to pick the creature up. She put him on her lap gently and patted his head. The blue creature turned and embraced his mistress in a hug but kept his eyes shut; not allowing his own tears to flow down.

His trainer looked down at him and spoke in a spectral voice, "Don't keep it inside Piplup," she patted his head and continued, "cry all you want." The penguin managed to chirp out a tiny noise and then he dug his face deeper into his trainers' night shirt. He shook his head violently before starting to weep uncontrollably. Piplup occasionally squeaked out, "Pip."

His mistress closed her eyes and returned the hug; she hushed him and soothed him. Her voice was not above a whisper, "I miss them too." She remembered the day how just one accident turned out to be the biggest down-fall of her life…

**- Flashback -**

There was a mighty chorus of 'woos' and 'Hooray' going on in the magnificent crowd of people. They were restless and cheering on the fine young coordinators taking part in the Nimbasa city Grand-festival. The Unova region – maybe because of its underdeveloped Cities- has no contests and as the other regions began to promote pokemon coordinating and styling, they wanted to do the same too. To put in simple terms the Nimbasa City Grand festival was an event that could help the people in Unova experience the thrill and excitement of witnessing a real contest battle.

It was a fine day and many coordinators showed off the beauty, elegance and effort the put in their pokemon in various ways'. There were tons of move variations from coordinators all around the world, some were absolutely breathtaking.

The coordinators were excited to perform in such a huge crowd. It was a great opportunity to boost up a person's reputation in Unova. One by one each coordinator went and did his/her best. The others were in the waiting room talking and discussing the possibilities of winning. Some were into arguments and some were too busy accessorizing themselves and their pokemon.

All of them looked grand but there was one coordinator who stole the hearts of many people. She was the main center of attraction and was not at all nervous. Her name is Dawn Berlitz, 'the princess of Sinnoh' as her home region natives like to call her. She played with her pokemon and giggled as they tried to mimic her actions by twirling around. This earned a couple of swoons from the male population and a few glares from the female coordinators.

Dawn was confident and ready to show the people how much work her pokemon did. The pokemon were excited too. Pachirisu and Piplup were perched up on each of her shoulder while Buneary was protectively wrapped around her arms. Quilava was down at the ground due to his size but didn't mind.

The MC introduced each contestant enthusiastically which sort of helped Dawn get her battle mode on. She looked at her pokemon and smiled before asking, "Are you guy's ready to win?" her pokemon replied quickly and pumped their fist's into the air in a very confident way, indicating that they are ready for anything.

Dawn smiled and nodded before returning her pokemon into their respective poke-balls and afterwards applying seals to only two of them.

Soon, after a short while, Marian shouted out loud, "Now, without further adieu, I introduce you the crown jewel of the Sinnoh region and the daughter of the famous coordinator Johanna Berlitz," she pointed to a curtain at a curtain, "DAWN BERLITZ!" the crowd went wild and roared as Dawn ran outside to the battle field. She was smiling like crazy and gave all sorts of graceful gestures to the people sitting in the arena.

Dawn began her performance by giving the audience a bow and returning back to her position before taking out two poke-balls, throwing them into the air while twirling, "Piplup, Pachirisu, Come on out!" the poke-ball opened which allowed Piplup and Pachirisu to came out with a shower of stars behind them. The two pokemon posed in the cutest way possible after landing on the ground. Dawn was mimicking their pose except she made a nice victory sign with her fingers.

The bluenette pointed to the sky before commanding, "Use Shocking Ice-factory!" Pachirisu nodded and jumped up in the air high enough that it could touch the lighting on the ceiling while Piplup jumped while using Ice beam and spun around to create a huge spiral tower of Ice.

Pachirisu - who was suspended in the air for just about enough time for piplup to make the Ice tower- landed on the very top of the huge ice structure, leaving Piplup at the base. He then leaped to the top with Pachirisu.

The penguin and the elm squirrel pokemon posed for a short six seconds. After the pose, their expressions turned fierce. Piplup created a huge whirlpool and suspended it in mid air just above its head at the very top of the ice-tower, showing of its might and at the same time Pachirisu used spark while spinning around like a ball. He rode the edges of the ice-sculpture, making it look like the electric version of the move 'Flame wheel'. Pachirisu jumped from the bottom and dove into Piplup's grand whirlpool.

Piplup released the whirlpool into the sky and then used Ice-beam again to freeze it. Pachirisu was now trapped inside the huge body of ice but it had enough room to move around inside it while using Discharge. The elm squirrel kept running around it the ice, making it shine. It was a very beautiful sight to see and it resembled Dawns 'Ice-chandelier'.

Piplup, who had enough of Pachirisu stealing the praise, enlarged its beak and used drill peck on the frozen Whirl-pool to break the ice. After the move was executed, Pachirisu and Piplup were surrounded with sparkles and landed on top of the spiral ice tower they made before.

Their performance made the crowd go wild. Each and every person cheered till their lungs gave up. Dawn and her pokemon ended it all with a graceful bow. Piplup and Pachirisu jumped from the tower and landed in Dawn's arms. Their gaze landed on the judges who were getting ready to give their comments about Dawn and her Pokémon's performance.

Marian entered the field and motioned towards the first judge, Mister Contesta before exclaiming, "Now, it's time for our judges to tell us what they think about this wonderful young coordinators performance!" Mister Contesta cleared his throat before smiling and looked at Dawn, satisfied with her appeal, "That was indeed one of the most sparked up appeals of this day, I wish you good luck."

Dawn hugged her pokemon while smiling brightly then shifted her gaze to the second judge who yelled, "It was remarkable!"

She nodded and looked at the last judge, Nurse joy who flashed a smile and said, "It was truly amazing to see how Dawn trained her pokemon. They showed how cute they are and also proved that little Pokemon can surely pack a punch! The moves were perfect and I am glad that your pokemon had fun doing it. Having fun is what contests are all about, right?"

Dawn grinned and looked at Pachirisu, "She's right you know!" the bluenette gave one more bow before returning back inside the waiting room for the coordinators.

The others were praising and congratulating her for the effort she put into her performance. After a while, Dawn got caught up in a conversation with the other coordinators and completely forgot to give piplup the reward he deserves - her hand made poffins.

Piplup -being the hyper and impatient pokemon he is- tugged on Dawn's dress to get her attention but it was all useless. He then had to take desperate measures. The penguin pokemon jumped on Dawn face, surprising his trainer and earning a few laughs from the other contestants. He chirped loudly and it was clear that the penguin was annoyed.

Dawn giggled and grabbed hold of Piplup in her arms. She patted his head and smiled "I'm sorry, I forgot!" Piplup frowned and crossed his arms, indicating he was upset. Dawn shook her head and turned to the people she was talking to, "I'm sorry guys…it looks like someone is hungry and I got to give him the poffins I promised."

The others laughed and nodded their heads, showing that they understand. Dawn waved them good-bye and exited the waiting room to the corridor that led outside. She looked at Piplup who jumped off her arms and ran ahead; he excited to know what flavor the poffins are.

Dawn smiled at her Pokémon's behavior and ran after him "Hey Piplup, wait up!" she eventually caught Piplup and looked down at him "I know you're excited but don't run off like that! You know who dangerous Nimbasa city is!"

True, Nimbasa city is known for its pokemon thief's and poachers. They could come out any moment and swipe a person's pokemon right under their nose.

Piplup looked at the ground all guiltily; he didn't like upsetting Dawn too much. His trainer shook her head and let a huge breath out, "Fine…but don't go too far ahead, okay?" Piplup looked up and chirped before running.

After a few moments they arrived at the park which led to the pokemon center Dawn was staying at. Piplup stopped to take in the view and gaped at the marvelous plant life. The young coordinator giggled and looked up to the sky, "Come on, we have to hurry up so that we could get to the contest in time." Piplup nodded and smiled in his own little penguin way while he followed his trainer.

Both of them were extremely happy, it was a perfect day, they were at a great contest and nothing could seem to have gone wrong until Dawn heard a noise, the noise could possibly be from behind a tree the two just walked pass by. She stopped in her way and wondered who could be at the park while the contest was still going on.

Piplup was just as curious as Dawn was. He jumped into Dawns arms and motioned towards a bush that was rustling.

Dawn gulped and hoped that there was no pokemon poacher. She tightened her hold around Piplup and began to walk faster to the pokemon center. It was wise of her to not take any chances with her safety. Dawn's pace increased as she felt like someone was following her. /p  
pJust before she could exit the park, she felt a buffed up arm wrap around waist and a hand grabbing her mouth, preventing her from escaping or screaming for help.

Piplup jumped out of Dawn's arms and faced his trainer and some other guy that was clearly not a good person. He threatened him by enlarging his beak. The man chuckled maniacally and gazed at Piplup with eyes full of blood lust, "Now now little guy…I don't want anybody getting hurt around here now do I?"

Piplup returned his beak to its normal size and growled "Atta boy…now why don't you quietly enter that cage over there and I'll let your trainer go."

Piplup - without hesitation - ran inside the cage before it sealed shut.

Dawn began to struggle and had a feeling that the man would not stay true to his words. She gave his hand a good bite and stomped on his foot. The man grunted as the pain kicked in his foot kicked in.

The bluenette looked at the man with fury, "How dare you try to do that?! You have no right to threaten me or my pokemon!" The man was clearly not going to answer her question so he leaped and tried to grab hold of Dawn. The man growled out, "Come back here you little jerk!"

Dawn jumped to her left and dodged the person. She frowned and took out a poke-ball from her pouch. She threw the poke-ball into the air and released a mammoth like beast that stood proud and ready for battle, "I won't hurt you, but Mamoswine sure will!"

The man got up and whistled which confused Dawn until she heard a couple of footsteps approach her. Dawn realized she needed all the help she could get so she called out all of her pokemon out. They were infuriated that the man tried to harm their trainer and her starter pokemon.

Before Dawn could command her pokemon, some people in matching uniforms trapped all of them in nets that were made of fiber glass. Piplup tried his best to get out of the titanium cage but the poor creature failed to do so. All that was left was to wait for his trainer to save him.

The man came near Dawn and gave her a huge slap across her cheek in front of her pokemon. He grinned and grabbed her from her hair before asking, "You think I am scared of a little fool? No, I ain't a coward you little prick." He looked at his comrades and signaled them. They in return nodded and attached the pokemon nets to a truck.

Dawn squirmed and yelled under the man's hold but he was too strong, "Now I make you suffer. Watch the show darling," He pulled Dawns hair and forced her to see the truck. Not sure what he was up to, Dawn let a tear escape her beautiful eyes and started to beg, "Please, just let them go and I'll give you all the money, just please let them go."

The man gave another one of his haunting chuckles and shook his head, "Actually sweet-heart, I was thinking about making you see what we do to pokemon," he whistled and the people working with him began to move the pokemon inside the truck. Luckily Piplup was still outside and the man was clearly thinking that the penguin was useless. Dawn looked at the truck and was unsure of what would happen next.

After a few minutes, horrified and bone-chilling shrieks were to be heard from inside the truck. Dawn stood still and gasped, "What are you doing to them?!" The screams continued and grew louder each minute. Dawn began to struggle even more and scream out, "STOP IT! YOU'RE HURTING THEM!"

The man put his hand over Dawn's mouth again but this time he also rested his chin on her shoulder, "Now now, if you scream again I just might have to cut your throat open." Dawn whimpered and gave in, she did not want to do something she'll regret.

He chuckled as the high-pitched screams grew louder, "Ah, Music to my ears!" the man stood a little farther from Dawn but still kept his hand on her mouth. Dawn had to hear the screams for about ten minutes until they finally stopped. She knew what happened to them, she wasn't dumb. All that was left for her to do now was to cry.

The man let go of her mouth and shifted his gaze at his comrade, "Bring them out" for a moment, Dawn thought that her pokemon were still alive but she was clearly mistaken. Moments later another one of the thugs brought out only Mamoswine's tusks and smirked before telling the leader, "It is done boss."

**- Flashback end -**

Dawn was horrified; she remembered the event even though her physician told her to not think about the incident. She just frowned as she also remembered the pitiful excuse the police came up with for being late. How nobody was there to help her, how her foolishness proved to be her biggest mistake. All she could do right now was to mourn the loss of her pokemon and to thank Arceus for saving Piplup.

She remembered how the small yet mighty penguin bolted through the cage like a damn bullet and began to battle even though he didn't had the strength to stand. He defended Dawn willingly and saved her from the thugs long enough till the police arrived. After that, he just passed out and had to recover for three days.

She hugged Piplup more as she also remembered blood, her pokemon's blood. How she was hopeless against the poachers and how she failed to save her pokemon. Dawn also pitied herself; all she could tell herself is that she doesn't deserve to be a trainer. She does not deserve to have a pokemon like Piplup. She does not deserve the gift of life if she couldn't protect the ones she loved.

After a few more moments of crying, both trainer and pokemon slept since they didn't want to hurt their eyes anymore.

The other day, Dawn and Piplup went down to talk to Johanna. The bluenette sat down and forced a few tears back; she didn't want to look weak and miserable in front of her mother.

Johanna consoled Dawn and embraced her; she hated seeing her daughter like this, "Dawn, I know this is too much to ask but would you please stop crying dear. It wasn't your fault."

Dawn shook her head and frowned, "How is NOT my fault? I couldn't, I…I was-" Johanna got up and stood in front her daughter and stopped her from speaking any further, "No! It wasn't your fault. Now, I want you to girl up dearest, it has been a month since that' happened and I can't stand seeing you all wrecked up," she hugged her daughter and smiled lovingly before letting her go, "why don't you and Piplup go out for a walk?"

Dawn was expressionless but after seeing Piplup's beaming smile, she just had to go for a walk. Johanna chuckled and pointed at piplup, "Look how happy it made him! The mere mentioning of a walk and he is all go-go!" Dawn smiled but it wasn't the same as Johanna's.

**- Piplup's P.O.V -**

I saw my trainer talking to her mother and frowned as Dawn was trying to admit that the incident was all her fault even after a lot of people told her that it wasn't. I miss my comrades, especially Quilava, my best poke-pal. I miss how all of us fought with each other and how we helping each other through thick and thin. I miss them dearly.

Johanna and I winked at each other; we knew that Dawn would do anything to make me happy so we made the whole 'go for a walk' plan up. Johanna would suggest Dawn to go for a walk and I would act all excited about it.

Dawn packed a few snacks and told Johanna that she would be walking for a long while which was great. I needed my trainer back; I need the bubbly and energetic Dawn back.

We soon walked around Twinleaf and met a few people, some were concerned and asked Dawn is she was okay. I wouldn't blame them though she was acting all gloomy and the aura around her was extremely saturnine. Dawn just told everybody that greeted her that she was fine and needed some fresh air. I frowned because I knew that this wasn't the way Dawn would normally greet people.

Finally, after an hour of touring the town we headed to Lake Verity, a place where I was sure Dawn would feel relaxed at. It was calm at the lake and I loved the atmosphere. I and my mistress did not utter a single word yet we could understand what the other was trying to say. It wasn't an awkward silence between us, it was actually quite comforting.

I climbed to her lap and snuggled with her before closing my eyes for nap. Soon, before I even began to sleep, I heard a noise coming from a place not far from here. I perked my head up and chirped while I ran to find out what the source of the noise was.

Dawn got up and ran after me, "Piplup please slow down!" I didn't want to disappoint her but this matter was serious.

I stopped near a clearing in the center of the forest and saw a helpless starly wounded under a tree. It was apparent that this little guy was being hunted down. Dawn arrived behind me not soon after I stopped and began to take in large breaths; a month without journeying seemed to have misshapen her a lot.

Dawn put her hands on her hips and looked cross, "Piplup I told you to not run off like that, haven't I?" she then began to wait for an answer. I of course just nodded and pointed to the starly so that I could dodge the situation.

Dawn's gaze softened and she walked over to the starly. I followed her and stopped right next to it, trying to communicate with the little guy, "Hey there!"

It looked up to me and immediately closed his eyes afterwards, "Who a-are you?" It seems that he was afraid that we might also be one of the poachers. I stood proud and smiled, "Hi! I'm piplup. You got nothing to worry about, we're nice."

The starly opened its eyes and then fixed his gaze at Dawn, "How do I know you aren't lying?" I smiled and patted his head with my flipper before Dawn scooped him up in her arms. She rubbed his head with her finger and smiled "Don't worry, I'll help you."

After that we decided to give the starly some immediate aid, his condition wasn't that good after all. We reached the pokemon center in few minutes which was surprising because Dawn was extremely sloppy with running from the past few days. I guess she is determined to help out starly at all costs.

**- End of Piplup's P.O.V -**

Dawn rushed through the entrance of the pokemon center and reached the front desk, completely out of breath. She paused and scanned the surroundings before locating Nurse Joy who was busy doing what-ever it was she's doing.

**- Dawn's POV -**

I cleared my throat which caught Nurse Joy's attention and she got up immediately after laying her eyes on the starly. Nurse Joy gasped and asked, "What on earth happened to this little Pokemon?" I frowned and handed her the little starly over so that she could assess his current condition.

Piplup jumped on the counter and looked at me in a concerned way; I think he was hoping for me to give an answer. I scratched the back of my head and answered, "This starly was in the woods where I found him. He seemed to be hurt so I thought it would be best if I brought him over here."

Nurse Joy nodded and rung a buzzer on her front desk, "I see, so he is a wild pokemon then?"

I nodded and put my hands in my pockets, "Indeed he is. Will he be okay?"

Nurse Joy nodded and smiled brightly before answering, "Oh yes! Just wait for just about an hour and he will be in top shape! The new medical equipment from Kanto just arrived." Nurse Joy placed Starly on a stretcher that was being pushed by a Chansey and went inside the treatment room.

I let a smile etch upon the very corner of my lips. A huge burden was lifted; it felt nice to help another. However, I feel like there was something that hit me. Kanto...why do I feel like I know this place? I feel like I am supposed to go there. Who lives in Kanto again?

I shook my head and pushed the thought way for now before walking over to the benches outside. Piplup jumped from the counter and followed me. We sat on a bench right next to the fountain and took in a huge breath of fresh air simultaneously, we felt natural after helping that starly.

I felt like there is more to life than just sorrow, life always has to offer you great opportunities, we just have to be brave enough to grasp them. I looked around and saw beauty in things after about a month of weeping and cursing the very existence of life. I had enough of letting my starter pokemon, my best friend down. I had enough of everybody going 'what an unfortunate girl, I pity her' every time they see me.

Youth is a blessing and I was wasting it. I felt pretty sure that if my other pokemon were here with me, they would use multiple bone-wrecking attacks on me for giving up on what I loved the most, for making myself feel inferior and for choosing such a degrading path.

I felt all this pang of charisma but deep down inside, I couldn't help but churn up the feeling of regret. Still, Life is a very precise definition of the term 'Roller coaster'.

I clenched my fists tight enough to leave red marks on the sides of my hands. Piplup obviously saw that and looked at me in a confused way. It was difficult reading his face; it was a thick blend of emotions. All concern, grief, regret, madness mixed in a round blue face that I think is adorable. He got up and grabbed my hand with his flippers and rubbed his cheek with it.

I smiled and forced my hand out of his hold before patting his head and asking, "Hey Piplup," I paused for a short moment before continuing "I was wondering if you would want to train a little when we get home."

Piplup's eyes shot open and his mouth was agape. It was like somebody told him that I committed suicide or something. He shook his head violently and titled his head in confusion, I think he can't fully understand me. I gathered all the courage in me and began to explain, "I'm so sorry, I know this will be hard for us but I feel like there is no use mourning about the past anymore. We got our whole lives ahead of us and I don't want to waste it like this."

My partner just looked at me with a serious expression fixed on his face, "Piplup," He paused and them jumped into my arms, "PIPLUP!" I almost choked. Was piplup somehow adapting to the new situation? Was he thinking the way I am? I raised him up so that we could face each other and questioned, "Wait, you accept?" He nodded and gave me an enthusiastic reply, "PIP!" I was getting too emotional for today so to stop I just smiled once again and looked at my poketch to check the time.

It seems that time flew faster then I imagined it to. An hour and fifteen minutes passed but to me and Piplup it's like we were sitting here on the benches just five minutes ago. I got up and went inside to check on the starly with Piplup walking ahead of me. He seemed cheered up for today.

After waiting for an additional fifteen minutes, Nurse Joy was still not there with the starly which got me a little worried, "Come on, it's been an hour and 30 minutes already."

Piplup just sat on the counter and fidgeted with some of Nurse Joy's pencils. I was about to warn him to not touch the pencils but something very soft and fuzzy landed on my shoulder and stopped me from scolding my starter. It was the same starly from before and he was okay!

The little birdie chirped happily and flew from my shoulder to where Piplup was. I bent down so that I could talk to him and asked, "You alright? I hope you didn't cause any trouble." The starly shook his head sweetly and began talking to Piplup who was showering the starly with his own range of questions.

I saw Nurse Joy come on out and analyze some papers before handing them to me. She smiled and said, "I'm sorry for the delay! I seemed to have forgotten where I put the performance chart for this starly."

I waved my hand in the air indicating that I didn't care and that there was no need for pointless apologies, "It's okay, what is his condition?" She nodded and flipped over the paper in my hand before pointing at a medical prescription stapled to the back of the paper, "As long as you give him his medicine on time, he is safe from infections and paralyses."

A huge wave of relief passed through me. I smiled and looked over to piplup, "Don't worry, the both of us will make sure that our friend Starly is healthy again." Starly began to flap his wings and get excited about something Piplup said. I guess he was happy to tag along with us. I packed the papers and the medicine Nurse joy handed me in my bag and fixed my hat on top of my head, "I guess we'll be going now!" Piplup nodded and jumped from the counter and landed into my arms while Starly began to fly on top of us.

Nurse joy smiled and waved us good bye before rushing to another room.

**- End of Dawns POV -**

Dawn walked over to the door with Starly flying near her. She had the most happiest of smiles on her face.

Starly was performing some aerial tricks which seemed to have caught Piplup's attention. The little penguin jumped down and leaped up in the air to fly next to Starly but failed each time he did. Dawn laughed at the scene and the trio was doing this all the way home.

Upon reaching her destination Dawn sighed and frowned once she realized that her walk was at an end. She picked Piplup in her arms and looked over to Starly, "I suppose you want to be free, huh?" The little bird pokemon stopped flying and descended on the fence post. He chirped, "Star Star!" then sat on Dawns shoulder before rubbing his tiny head with her cheek, "starly."

Dawn returned the gesture and smiled once she understood what Starly was trying to say. She stopped her actions and turned her head so that she may face Starly, "I take it you want to join me, right?" Piplup chirped excitedly in her arms as Starly nodded enthusiastically.

The young bluenette went inside her house and began to tell her mother of the adventure she had today. Johanna was pleased at the sight of Dawn going hyper active with her tale. Dawn began to tell her how her day started from sympathetic to plain amazing. She was grateful that Arceus saw her fit to have another chance at training friends. The older bluenette was fairly surprised when she was introduced to Starly.

Johanna would have never guessed that Dawn would begin to warm up to catching pokemon on her first day of walking outside and she was grateful that Piplup is the reason why she's this happy. Starly was welcomed as part of the family with open arms.

The Berlitz household began their dinner at 9 o'clock. All of them feasted on a delicious meal that Johanna learned while watching TV the other day. Dawn and her pokemon sat on the couch because they wanted to watch a battle between two very powerful trainers. Glameow was perched up on the window sill in the kitchen next to the flower pot since she felt like sleeping under the stars tonight.

Dawn and Piplup's mouth were agape as the trainer ordered his Blaziken to use Blaze Kick in mid-air in order to counter his opponents Leaf Blade attack. The attacks collided and caused a huge explosion that covered most of the field in a black fog. The battle was fierce; Dawn envied the people who were watching it in person. She raised the volume of the TV to hear the commentator.

The Blaziken glared at the Sceptile and growled under his breath. By the looks of things, Blaziken wanted to tear him apart. A man with a brown hood ordered his Sceptile to use Solar beam while the other person wearing a black hat raised his hand up to the sky. His Blaziken turned his head to look at his master and nodded before jumping in the air and landing behind Sceptile. Dawn gasped as the Blaziken wrapped his arm around the Sceptile's neck; trapping him in a head lock. The Blaziken started to squeeze the Sceptile's neck before glowing like a crimson light.

The man in the travelers hat smirked viciously, he fixed the hat on his head and looked the other way before saying, "Use Incinerate," the Blaziken glowed more and the flames on his hands blazed as the Sceptile struggled to get out of his grasp. The large gecko jerked, kicked and pushed but it proved to be useless against the Blaziken. After a few minutes Sceptile's trainer had enough of seeing his pokemon getting tortured so he raised both of his arms and turned to the referee before shouting, "I forfeit! I give up!"

The referee raised the flag in the direction of where the man with the travelers' hat was and blew his whistle, "Ace Libron has forfeited the match; therefore, the victory goes to Lionel Theodosia from the Hoenn Region!" Lionel nodded and waved his hand after which Blaziken released the Sceptile and leaped by his masters' side. The referee flinched as Lionel's cold stare landed on him. Back at home, Dawn awed at the strength of Lionel's Blaziken. She wondered what the rest of his team is like.

Piplup was still zoned out. He wanted to be of equal strength with that Blaziken. The little penguin shook his head and sighed as he realized coordinators don't focus much on strength. It's the presentation of the moves that matters in a contest.

Starly looked at Dawn and Piplup, he wondered what attracted them in the magic box. He tilted his head and flew in front of them before chirping, "Starly star star!" Dawn may have not heard Starly's cry. The little bird flapped his wings and used gust at Dawns face to get her attention. Dawn covered her face and fell backwards on the sofa, "What is it Starly?" The little bird pokemon looked at her with concern and flew towards the TV. He pointed down at it and then shifted his gaze towards Piplup, "Starly!" Dawns face lit up in realization, she looked at Piplup and saw how he looked at Lionel and his Blaziken. Dawn sighed and motioned Starly to come closer.

The little bird pokemon flew near Dawn and landed on her lap. Dawn patted his head and sighed, "You're wondering why we're looking at them like that, aren't you?" Starly nodded and waited for a reply eagerly.

Dawn smiled and stopped her patting, "It's because we were once a strong team like that too. I had five other pokemon friends with me but," Dawn paused and took a deep breath, "they passed away. I guess Piplup wants to train or battle to become stronger."

Starly smiled and chirped excitedly before flying towards the window, "Star Star!" He looked outside at the field then back at Piplup. Dawn smiled as she understood, "Okay then," she picked Piplup up in her arms, "want to train buddy?" Piplup nodded enthusiastically and jumped from her arms before rushing outside to battle. Out there, he warmed up for the battle whilst he waited for Starly.

Dawn ran outside and laughed at Piplup's eagerness, "Okay let's do this!" she took out Piplup's poke-ball and scanned her pockets for Starly's but she couldn't find it.

It then hit Dawn; she forgot to capture Starly in his poke-ball. Dawn panicked for a moment and ran inside the house, up to her room. She searched around her room and eventually landed across a poke-ball inside her old boxes. Dawn went downstairs and ran to where Starly was. She laughed nervously and patted the birds head, "Say boy, I forgot to catch you in a poke-ball. Are you ready?" Starly nodded and flew up in the air indicating that he was prepared.

Dawn threw the poke-ball in the air in Starly's direction. The young bird hit the poke-ball with this right wing to make it open. The red beam whooshed out and caught him inside. After the capture, the poke-ball dropped down on the ground and moved for a couple of minutes before a short 'bing' was to be heard. Dawn felt accomplished.

This was the first time after many months that she experienced the thrill of catching pokemon. She picked the poke-ball up and raised it to the sky like a trophy, "I caught a STARLY!"

The young bluenette and her pokemon battled for a while. They had fun using different attacks and dodging them. Dawn felt she like she was in her element; she felt like she was better at battling. Johanna occasionally got out and checked on her progress. Dawn and her pokemon got tired after three hours of training. She went inside and prepared herself for bed.

While she was getting ready to sleep, Piplup was playing with Starly. The two pokemon were chasing after a bouncy ball that once belonged to Pachirisu. Dawn – after brushing her hair thoroughly - sat on the foot of her bed and took a deep breath in while looking at the stars, "Good night guys," she gently ran a hand through her hair, "I miss you."

Piplup had enough of circling the room so he decided to rest on Dawns lap. Starly flew right next to them and snuggled near Dawns thigh. She smiled and picked both of her pokemon up before falling back into her pillow and cuddling with them. Dawn had a huge smile on her face as her eyes slowly began to close. Starly inched a little closer to her while Piplup hugged her back. This was the first time in forever that she felt this way. This was the first time she felt safer than ever.

Dawn fell asleep after a few moments but then woke up again as she felt an empty space next to her. Both of her pokemon weren't next to her. Dawn rubbed her eyes and sat up, still confused. She got up and slid her buneary slippers on her feet before getting up. Dawn stretched her arms and scratched the back of her head before titling her head in confusion as her gaze landed on the both of her pokemon sitting on the end of her bed, looking at the stars. She walked up to them and gently sat beside them.

Piplup sighed and leaned back into Dawns arms. Starly was still looking at the stars. Dawn patted Piplup's head and asked, "You told Starly about them, didn't you?"  
Starly nodded in response to Dawns question and flew near her face. Dawn sighed and chuckled, "That doesn't explain why you two are up this late at night!" Starly frowned and flew inside of Dawns cupboard.

Dawn just sat there, confused at Starly's actions. She was about to get up and follow him but stopped as Starly flew outside, carrying her travelling hat with him. Dawn titled her head in confusion, "What do you want to do with that old thing?" Starly gently placed Dawns hat on her head and flew towards the dresser to get a hand-held mirror.

Dawn smiled as her gaze landed on her reflection. She grabbed the mirror from Starly's talons and looked in the mirror. It was like the young bluenette was trying to solve a mystery that was concealed in two ocean blue labyrinths. Dawn sighed as she set the mirror next to her and then patted Piplups head, "I feel like I can just," she stopped patting the penguins head and looked outside the window, "like I can run down and begin my life again."

Piplup frowned and grabbed Dawns hand before chirping, "Piplup! Pip pip lup pip-lup!"

He continued his pointless chirping until Dawn forced her hand back and grabbed her head in pain, "Stop! My head feels like jelly with all that noise."

Piplup sighed and slumped back on the bed in defeat. Starly took the message and flew next to him before flying back inside Dawns cupboard. The little bird took out a pokedex and flew towards Dawn; eager to tell her what Piplup tried to say.

Dawn grabbed the pokedex and stared at it in confusion before realizing what the Pokemon were trying to say, "I get it!" she jumped off her bed and ran into the closet, "Arceus, how could I have been so blind?" Dawn grabbed a black traveler's bag and ran inside her bathroom.

Starly and Piplup exchanged smirks; they knew what Dawn tried to do. Dawn came out after 15 minutes, all dressed up in her trainers outfit. She looked at herself in the mirror but sweat-dropped after seeing her condition. Dawn sighed and dusted her scarf while muttering, "I guess I haven't focused much on my gear," she put on her scarf but frowned, "man I look like a cave ma- or in my case, cave woman."

Piplup chuckled nervously as he saw his trainers' dusty, ragged clothes and scarf. He waddled into the closet and bought out Dawns savings box. The young bluenette nodded and took the box from Piplup's flippers before opening it to see how much money she had at the moment.

Dawn took out the money and smiled satisfyingly before looking at Starly, "I think I have enough money to buy a car!" she excitedly jumped on the bed and counted it, "yup, I've been saving since I was seven and I guess all the harsh ice-cream sacrifices payed off both physically and financially."

Piplup shook his head in disbelief then chirped enthusiastically. Dawn nodded and raised her elbow, indicating that she wanted Starly to sit on her shoulder. The little bird pokemon flew to her shoulder and sat comfortably while Piplup jumped in Dawns arms. Dawn smiled and looked outside the window, "I know my mom would never let me journey in my current mental condition and I know that no matter how hard I'll try to persuade her that I'm okay, she'll deny my statement," Dawn walked over to her desk and set Piplup on the wood before taking out a paper and pen, "the only option I have is to leave right now."

Dawn immediately began to write a letter to her mother. She finished after ten-minutes and folded the paper before tucking it in her pocket. Piplup climbed in Dawns arms once more and smiled at his trainer. Dawn tiptoed across the hallway and crept into her mother's room to place the letter on a pillow next to Johanna. She went downstairs and put on some ordinary shoes before walking out of the house.

Outside, Dawn sighed and looked at the sky, "The next time I'll be back here," she looked at Piplup and smiled, "is when I'll be a successful trainer."

Dawn walked down the path to a 24/7 trainer supply shop that opened in Twinleaf town a year ago. She entered the shop and scanned through every shelf there was. Dawn eventually settled down with a simple Kalos trainer outfit, a black scarf, black combat boots that reached her calves, a camping bag, pokemon food, a black bike and a beanie that was similar to her older one but had a red poke-ball sign instead of a pink one. She bought a black trainers bag which was suitable for rough exploring and underwater expeditions. Dawn ended her shopping spree with black scarves that she bought for her Pokemon and six ultra balls but purchased some extra scarves since she felt like having more friends on her Journey.

The young bluenette went to the Pokemon Center to transfer Piplup and Starly to their new ultra-balls then set her course to Sandgem town to give Professor Rowan a visit.

Thanks to the amazing bike Dawn had bought the time taken to reach Sandgem town had decreased. She stopped in front of the main gate and parked her bike next to the wall outside. Dawn retuned Piplup and Starly to their respective ultra-balls and cautiously went inside the lab. She entered the front door and coached her breathing as she felt somebody was behind her.

Dawn was almost about to shout until a hand gently grabbed her shoulder from the behind, "Don't scream Dawn you might awaken the Pokemon." The young bluenette turned and smiled as her gaze landed on Professor Rowan, "Professor! How are you?" The Professor removed his hand from Dawns shoulder and walked towards the light switch, "Just fine young one, I was just about to leave until you came," he switched on the lights and turned to Dawn, "What brings you here at this late an hour? And I see you've changed your look."

Dawn chuckled nervously as she scratched the back of her head, "You see, I was hoping you could give me a pokedex for my journey," she returned back to her normal stance and smiled, "I'm planning on journeying again."

Professor Rowan nodded and walked over to his desk, "Does your mother approve of this?" Dawn nodded enthusiastically after which Professor Rowan plugged in a black pokedex into the main computer.

The pokemon professor turned to look at Dawn as the computer was programming the pokedex, "How is your health? Have you recovered from the incident?" Dawn frowned and lowered her head in fright, "N-no, but I have to try and be better!" Rowan sighed and handed Dawn the pokedex after it was completed. The old man got up and stood in front of Dawn, "I hope you know what you're doing. It is not my business to question your actions but if I find out that you're running away I'll," he was interrupted by Dawn, "No need to worry Professor!" she bowed in respect and ran outside.

She began to cycle her way down to route 219 which led to route 220.

At sunrise, Dawn was at a small harbor on route 220 that sailed ships to other regions. The young bluenette offered to pay a boat driver to escort her to the mysterious region she'd heard rumors about. The boat driver couldn't refuse after seeing the handsome amount of pokedollars Dawn gave him. He told her that the boat shall set sail after sunset today because that's when he'd be free of his responsibilities.

Dawn agreed to his terms and set her camping bag next to a huge tree in the forest.

This young bluenette was risking everything for a chance to live again. She was about to give up but luckily snapped back into her senses after a faithful encounter with a wild starly. She set her mind about being a Pokemon trainer and refused to be a coordinator because she felt like it would remind her of her dark past. Dawn spent the entire night thinking about the possibilities of her finding real friends - like the ones she had before – that will accompany her on this adventure. This was definitely going to be the journey she'd remember the most.

**- With Johanna last night -**

Last night at the Berlitz residence with Johanna, we could see that the older bluenette was conversing with a familiar raven-haired boy with brown eyes. She breathed heavily and took a sip of her tea before saying, "Is there a way you and the others can visit Dawn? Apparently the physician thinks it will be good for her health."

The young man nodded and frowned, "I'll be there don't you worry Mrs. Berlitz," he patted a yellow rodent that set next to him and continued, "you could've told me about Dawns condition earlier. I mean, what kind of person would let their friend suffer while they're out travelling the land? I can split mountains to help Dawn; I just wish I knew about such a tragic incident earlier."

Johanna nodded and placed her cup on the table, "I'm sorry but I thought it would've be best if you didn't know. That way, you could focus on your own life. I apologize again Ash."

Ash Ketchum waved his hand and chuckled, "No need to apologize Ma'am, it's no big deal." Pikachu frowned and wiped another tear that froze on his red cheek, "Pika Pikachu." The raven haired boy patted Pikachu's head reassuringly and smiled, "I guess Pikachu misses Buneary and the others." Johanna placed her hand on her heart and nodded, "I suppose he does," she sighed and continued, "When will you be here?" Ash placed a hand under his cheek, indicating that he was in deep thought before snapping his fingers, "I'll be there in three days."

Johanna felt a huge burden being lifted from her shoulders, "Thank-you Ash, I'll wait till then." Ash nodded and waved Johanna good-bye before disappearing from the screen.

Johanna wiped a tear from her right eye and looked at the ceiling in distress, "Oh my little girl," she got up and began to walk up stairs, "Arceus help her."

* * *

**00 Authors Notes 00**

**Ace:** Ha 8k words excluding the authors notes! How was the debut for this fan-fiction? *eagerly waits for a reply*

**Argonaut:** It was below average. You did your best though.

**Ace:** Whaa? T^T First I get fooled about the food and now you tell me my fic isn't proper reading material? The first chapter was supposed to be short!

**Argonaut:** Why is Dawn shown to be happy and sad at the same time?

**Ace:** For those of you who like to do some in-depth research about the animated characters in the Pokemon anime, you'd know the answer to this question.

**Argonaut:** So...she is like that because?

**Ace:** Dawn is shown to be very emotional and gets scarred easily if scared or emotionally hurt. However, this does not mean she doesn't recover after ONE incident that changes her thinking. So to put it in simple words, Dawn gets unhappy but then thanks to a special event that happens in her life, she gets her mojo back! That's Dawn for ya!

**Argonaut:** Why wasn't the word '_Starly's_' first alphabet in all-caps before he was in Dawn's possession?

**Dominic:** Isn't it obvious? Starly was just another ordinary starly before he was with Dawn. After he tagged along with her near the fence post, he was called Starly. This means he isn't an ordinary starly but now belongs to Dawn and has a proper identity.

**Argonaut:** LOL, I wasn't listening to the both of you =p

**Ace:** How cruel can you get? *Takes out a now face my wrath!

**Argonaut:** You have no idea what you're about to get yourself into… *growls and sparks fly out from his teeth*

**Ace:** *cracks knuckles* I'm a black-belt brotha!

**Domino:** *Watches them perform kung-fu tricks while being suspended in the air* I have no idea…

**Ceaser:** Please, it would me very much appreciated if you could tell us how to improve Ace's writing. If there are any faults, then don't be afraid to highlight them in a constructive manner on the review board.


	2. The Card

**Hey hey HEY! **

**This is Chapter two and it features Dawn Berlitz and her Pokemo- Why am I telling you what happens in the chapter? Right, because I'm Curious too =3**

** Ash and Dawn still haven't met but they meet other people their age. So be cool when I throw off tiny hints that aren't of Pearlshipping here and there. Also, I won't be doing those scripts from now on so yay! =D I have to admit, writing comedy scripts is not 'my thing' XD**

**On a side note, my new multi-chapter fic named 'Villain' will be released not long after I updated this fic so be sure to check it out. ****It's a little sad but it'll be worth your time. Villain will contain major fluffy flashbacks and drama as the hero/villain (A.K.A Ash Ketchum) and Dawn Berlitz. If you like Pearlshipping and you like drama/heartbreaking scenes, don't hesitate to read it out! ;D**

**Be sure to read the super-important authors note at the end of this chapter!**

* * *

**_With the Kalos team after Johanna called_**

A young man paced around the room in the pokemon center. He seemed to be in deep thought and was unaware that his blonde friends were eyeing him with concern.

On his shoulder sat a yellow rodent like creature that had the same expression as his master did, except that his was looking less intense. In fact, the little creature looked adorable with this serious expression and such a face caught the eye of a young blonde girl, who was probably the youngest person in this room.

A boy, whose hair had the same blonde color as the little girl did and was possibly of the same age as Ash spoke in a rather concerned tone, "Are you alright Ash?" he hesitated for a moment and continued, "you've been like this for the past ten minutes now."

The raven haired lad known as Ash stopped mid-way and turned to the source of the voice. His confused gaze landed on the boy and he tilted his head, "Sorry, did you ask me something, Clemont?"

The blonde male sighed nodded his head, "Yes, as a matter of fact I did. What's wrong with you Ash? Is there something wrong?"

Ash shook his head slightly and waved his hand in the air as if he were implying 'don't worry'.

Clemont frowned at the response. This was clearly not the answer he wanted.

After the pathetic response, probably at the same time Clemont was busy frowning, a blonde girl who was close to Ash's age got up and marched up to him. One can tell that she was infuriated by the look on her face; however, all she did when she reached Ash was to put a hand on his shoulder in a comforting manner and smile reassuringly, "Ash, we are your friends. You can tell us what's wrong. I promise we'll do anything we can to help."

Ash's shoulders drooped, and his breathing was steady. He smiled back at the female, "Thanks a lot, Serena," she winked and gave him a thumbs up before backing off a few inches to let Ash speak more.

Ash turned his head slightly to look at Pikachu; he was unsure of what to do next. The tiny rodent motioned Ash that it was okay after which the trainer took a huge half-hearted sigh, "I've been really," he scratched the back of his head in confusion; there was no appropriate word to describe what he had been going through lately, "worried? I think. Yeah, I've been worried," Ash couldn't force back a frown as he said, "about a certain friend of mine who had been through a tragic accident," he walked over to the bed and sat at the end of it.

Serena's eyes softened while Clemont shot a confused look at Ash.

Ash's voice darkened as his eyes narrowed down to the floor, "I can't believe myself honestly. I should've talked to her and asked her how she was. Maybe if I did I, could've had helped her."

Bonnie let out an exasperated sigh, "Who are you talking to?"

Ash snapped back into reality and chuckled sheepishly, "Sorry, I was talking to myself back there. So, like I said, my friend, she went through an accident."

Serena tensed as Ash mentioned another 'female'. She could see it in Ash's eyes, and the way he was talking, that this female meant a lot to him.

He was hurt but Serena's own selfishness consumed all emotions of sorrow, which led to her accidentally blurting out, "I bet she's just fine. Whoever she is, she's surely not worth all this worry Ash. Cheer up!"

Ash's looked at Serena in utter shock, his eyes wide open, glancing furiously at her. Serena gulped and looked at another way, for Ash's cold, hard stare frightened her.

What she had said about this female was insulting not only to her but it was offensive to him as well. Clemont saw the anger that built up in Ash's eyes, he was aware of the raven haired trainer's temper. He stood up and smiled, "Why don't you sit down and let Ash finish, Serena."

Serena stared into Ash's eyes before shaking her head, "Of course! Sorry I interrupted Ash."

Ash nodded then continued, "Anyway, her accident happened almost half a year ago and I just found out about it a few hours ago. Can you believe it? I'm one of her best friends and no one granted the courtesy of informing me about her condition!"

Clemont nodded, this situation must be painful for Ash. After all, journeying with him taught Clemont that when Ash makes a friend, he vows to keep that friendship till the very end. Plus, now that Ash is older, he catches on to serious situations quicker than ever.

Serena faked a smile and asked, "Who is she?"

The raven haired boy sighed as Bonnie ran over to where Pikachu was, "Her name is Dawn. She was one of the most amazing and most talented people I've ever seen," he smiled as his gaze shifted to the night sky outside the window, "we've traveled through an entire region together with another friend of mine, Brock, but you don't know him yet."

Serena's eyes glared at Ash and her frown intensified. Who is this Dawn that Ash thinks so highly about and what has she got Serena doesn't?

The older blonde female had no idea that Clemont was staring at her with just as much concern as Bonnie was. Clemont lowered his head in defeat and continued to listen to the raven haired trainer.

Ash cleared his throat before looking back at them, "Unfortunately, my friend Dawn had lost her Pokemon to poachers. Oh and, did I mention that she was the kind of person who would jump in front of a train to save the ones she loved? Well, now you know she is," the Citron siblings smiled slightly.

Ash had this dreamy look on his face, "She's an amazing person. A little reckless, but she's always there to show you that you're not alone," his smile widened. Bonnie asked him confidently, "So this means she's like you, right?"

Serena huffed as Ash chuckled to himself before nodding, "In a way, yeah."

He stood up and continued, "That loss affected her greatly and she had a mental breakdown. My friend lost her first pokemon team to ruthless, heartless monsters and all this happened on the day she made her first contest debut in Unova."

Pikachu's ears drooped low and the electric mouse had visible droplets of tears streaming down his red cheek pouches.

Bonnie panicked before getting a tissue to wipe Pikachu's face, "Was Pikachu close friends with Dawn or Dawn's pokemon?"

Ash nodded and patted his yellow friends head, "Yes, he was pretty close with Dawn. In fact, his love interest was a buneary that belonged to her."

Bonnie smiled and she cuddled with Pikachu while whispered into his right ear, "Don't worry Pika-pal, she's in a better place now," Pikachu said nothing; he returned the hug and wept a little more.

Serena was too focused about what Ash said about the girl Dawn, which resulted in her being too busy to give a quick sympathetic glace at the heart-broken Pikachu. Luckily for her, Ash doesn't notice her much.

She put her hand under her chin and sat in a thinking position, "So how is Dawn now?"

Ash sighed and lowered his head, "That's what I'm worried about. I have to see in person that she's okay but then that would mean I have to leave the Kalos circuit and you guys for a while. I was unsure about what you'd say."

Serena gasped as she looked over to Clemont in a distressed way.

Clemont smiled and stood up, "Ash you idiot. You should go and meet Dawn! She's your friend and she needs your company," he looked over to Serena and Bonnie before saying, "we understand that Dawn is your friend and friends help each other in their time of need," he smiled and gave Ash a thumbs up, "besides, who says that we can't come?"

Ash felt relived but he still shook his head, "No, what about Bonnie's starter pokemon? She can't miss that!"

Clemont patted Bonnie's head and said, "My sister has plenty of chances to get a starter. She can wait."

Bonnie nodded enthusiastically and stood up next to Clemont, "Don't worry Ash!"

Serena sighed with relief; she wouldn't be separated from her precious Ash this way, "That's a great idea! Now that we've all agreed, where does Dawn live?"

Ash smiled at her way and answered, "Sinnoh. That's where dreams and adventures truly begin."

Clemont gasped and yelled out enthusiastically, "You mean THE Sinnoh region? The place where the mighty deities reside at? The place where all the cultures of every region prospers at? You mean the place where-"

Ash put a hand on Clemonts mouth and spoke out, "Yeah, now shut up, will ya?"

The group broke into a fit of laughter as soon as Ash let go of Clemont.

**_With Dawn in Sinnoh_**

Dawn was somewhere in the forest alongside Route 220, she was sleeping in accordance to her pokemon, but truth be told, the coordinator had not rested a bit since she left home.

She was up for the night, thinking about what she had done, why she had run away and what the possible consequences of such an act were.

The bluenette mentally slapped her self and then she yawned; this wasn't the time to sleep.

Dawn got up and sighed, this wasn't going anywhere and at the rate she's thinking things through, she might go crazy. She grabbed her shoes and left her scarf and hat where they were. After all, she didn't need them at this late an hour.

The bluenette hastily put her shoes on and then began sprinting in the forest in order to avoid waking up her pokemon, who wanted to sleep under the stars tonight rather than to stay sheltered up inside their poke-balls.

Piplup stirred in his sleep as he heard the rustling of the leaves and Starly groggily opened his right eye to check on Dawn. However, this was of no use for the little bird was too tired to notice what was happening around him. He let out a half-hearted sigh and closed his eyes for some rest.

Meanwhile, Dawn went further in the forest, but slowed down her pace to enjoy how the moonlight lit up the forest. She roamed around, encountering quite a few noctowl, ratatta and eevee on her way. She petted them and followed the woodland Pokemon around the forest.

Dawn had the urge to catch the eevee but seeing how it acted all riled up in the forest made her feel sympathetic towards it. Besides, she'd never forgive herself for catching a pokemon that doesn't like to leave and this may end up in the pokemon disliking her.

She walked until the pokemon eventually led her to a stream. It had many small pokemon nesting around it. Some were singing all together to make a beautiful, symphonic melody. The eevee pounced in the water, making a splash while the noctowl gently settled themselves on the branches of the trees that surrounded the stream.

Dawn took a good whiff of the fresh air. She closed her eyes and sat near the pokemon, taking in the breeze that gently passed by and the music that danced through the air.

She felt some pokemon, a buizel and a shinx to be precise, brush their heads at the side of her leg in an affectionate manner, making her giggle at the feel of their soft fur touching her smooth legs.

Dawns head however, began to think about how her mother would react to the letter and what she's going to do to find her.

The bluenette took a huge breath and grabbed her forehead as the shinx and buizel ran away to their respective dens. Her head began to ache in a very odd way. It was almost as if somebody put a curse on her for no reason at all.

The little stream was so peaceful and refreshing, it could eliminate all feelings of doubt and mistrust in a second. However, Dawn could still feel this ominous presence behind her, she could not begin to comprehend how the intense vibes of hatred she felt, scared her.

She gulped and hoped that it was no threatening, large, territorial pokemon that was behind her. The bluenette crossed her fingers and closed her eyes. The little pokemon began to scatter away in all directions and there was no denying the fact that the Pokemon were afraid of what was behind her.

Dawn opened her eyes, took a huge breath and slowly turned her head to check the cause of such disturbance. Upon turning her head, the first thing her own eyes landed on was another pair of red, blood thirsty eyes.

She gasped as the creature roared as loud as it could which sent a wave of shivers down Dawn's spine. Dawn yelped as the creature put on of its huge foot forward, ready to dash at her with sheer force.

There was no doubt; the creature was a huge tryanitar, who had loads of scratches and bruises, obviously meaning that the beast is a keen battler.

Dawn made no sudden movements, she knew that if she tried to escape, the tryanitar would just come after her and eventually would come across Piplup and Starly, who were still unaware of the presence of such a terror.

Dawn closed her eyes and stood still, she wasn't able to more and besides, she was prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice for her Pokemon.

The tryanitar wasted to effort in charging up a hyper beam, but, just before the large creature could hurt her, all that was to be heard was the sound of two attacks colliding. Dawn's eyes opened in shock as the dirt and smoke flew in all directions. The collision was massive, it seemed.

A small crater made by sheer force was right below the space where the attacks collided at. She scanned the area to find the Pokemon or person who saved her.

After the smoke cleared, there was no sign of tryanitar anywhere. It was as if he had vanished into thin air. Dawn tilted her head in confusion. How could a creature of its size disappear like this? Obviously, there had to be a reasonable explanation for this. Dawn walked to the place where the tryanitar once stood, she was still in shock though, "What just happened?"

With caution, she looked around to see what happened. No movement, no nothing.

Dawn turned around and sighed, "Strange," this was her chance to go back to where Piplup and Starly were.

She took a step but stopped as she felt something brush past her left ear at great speed. The force of the object was huge; it had cut of a few strands of hair before lodging itself in the dirt. Dawn spun around and saw a Persian blue and white checked card, stuck in the dirt in a rather fashioned way.

She walked to it and plucked it out from the soil before standing straight again.

The bluenette looked around in the trees; the one who tossed this little killing machine at her would sure be where he or she was hiding, "I better run."

She wanted to waste no time in running away for if she were to stay for long she's be letting them have a decent shot at killing her.

Dawn didn't look back, she ran until she heard her Piplups' troubled cries for her. She turned left and kept on running until she came across her little camp site, "Yes!"

"I'm glad that's over," Dawn was relieved. She smiled as Piplup ran towards her, "Aw, I'm sorry for scaring you like that," he jumped into her arms and chirped out its name enthusiastically. Starly simply flew above Dawn in circles, overjoyed about the fact that Dawn is safe.

She laughed as Piplup nuzzled his head with her cheek then sat down with the card still in her hands. Dawn spoke out in a soft voice, "Why do I always end up in trouble?"

Piplup frowned and took the card, turning it around for observation.

The card has a fancy black rose's border and some text in the middle. Dawn read the text out loud, "Go to the heart of the Forest," she looked at Starly before speaking out in a blunt tone, "What? That's just dumb."

She ripped the card and threw it away, not wanting to engage herself in anymore drama, "What kind of lame prank is this? I bet the person who did this thinks he's smart!" Dawn took off her boots and threw them to the side, slightly annoyed at this joke, "I ain't falling for it, ya hear?!"

She threw herself backwards on her knack pack before yawning, "Good night and guys, make sure I don't run away again."

Starly and Piplup shook their heads before going back to where they were sleeping.

_**Meanwhile at another place**_

A young boy with spikey, wild hair and a strange, bipedal otter-like-pokemon that was not native to Sinnoh, paced through the forest, "Come on Mike! Run!" the boy panted out.

His pokemon nodded attentively and followed his masters' orders.

The otter-like-pokemon huffed and puffed, completely breaking his speed barrier and setting a new record. However, he was definitely getting exhausted and the poor soul felt the strength in his legs leave him slowly and painfully.

The pokemon slowed down till his pace was reduced to a jog and he battled to keep his feet moving. He was feeling completely drained.

The boy eyed his partner and growled, "Mikey!" he stopped and grabbed his partner before it fell unconscious, "Mikey? Pal? Dewott? Can you hear me?" the boy yelled and shook his partner violently to get him to respond.

The Dewott pants and nods tiredly, "Deeew"

The boy smiled as his head fell, "I thought you were done for. I guess we can rest. After all, we've been trainin' for three days!"

Mikey smiled and raised his hand, which was curled up into a fist, then waited for the boys' reaction.

His partner laughed and fist-bumped him, "Buddies to the end. Though you shouldn't scare me like that stupid! I almost had a heart-attack!"

Mikey grinned and stood up straight, "Dewott!"

The boy nodded and pulled out a Persian blue and white checked card out of his pocket, "That's right! We're here!" he brought the card to his face level and read it out loud, "Head to the Forest of Hope."

Mikey gave the boy thumbs up, "And we gotta be careful," Mikey nodded as the boy continued, "After all, Team Ty-Ro is after us, all the way from Hoenn."

His partner growled under his breath which made the boy laugh, "I hate them too."

The boy jumped in the air while pointing to the sky and yelled out, "Hugh Kress is gonna find this mystery dude and ask for the truth!" Mikey jumped after the boy did, but didn't show any less excitement.

Hugh grinned and grabbed Mikes' hand as he yelled, "C'mon! We gotta go to the heart of the Forest!"

Mike sweat-dropped and forced his hand out off Hugh's hand, "Dew, Dew!" he waved his hands in the air.

Hugh laughed nervously, "Yeah, I guess running or yelling isn't the best option, right?" Mike nodded in response.

"Let's go find out about the truth!" Hugh ran away, without bothering to look back.

Mikey sighed and ran after his master, still amazed at how he survived till now.

* * *

**Hey hey!**

**Yeah, Mike is also called Mikey sometimes and Hugh and Dawn received the same cards. Surprise!**

**Well, first off, to clear things up, there's a lot going up in my mind lately and I had an idea to change this fic completely! Though, the cast, crew, personalities, etc will stay the same but the whole plot changes. Don't worry, you'll love the fic (especially the ending, I'm gonna blow you guys away!).**

**Sit back and read the ultimate story of trust, suffering, love and betrayal. Do tell me if there are any spelling mistakes in this chapter ^^**

**Oh, and, I think I should think A LOT about whether or not I should be publishing the story Villian(Pearlshipping). So, I'm thinking about delaying its debut a little, kay? (Just joking, I'm gonna post it soon o3o)**

**Oh, and, chapter updates DON'T depend on reviews, follows and Favorites. As long as my heart is in to it, I'll not back out on ANY story and hopefully no story of mine will go on Hiatus ^^**

**Keep on updated to read awesome stories, and do check my profile every once in a while to know what I'm doing. Oh, and please do check the poll on my profile~ I need help!**

**-CuriousChesnaught**


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